Genetic diversity assessment in Indian cultivated pea (Pisum sativum L.) varieties using RAPD markers

In the present study, the genetic diversity and inter-relationships among 12 varieties of pea were analyzed by using RAPD markers. A total of 118 bands were generated with 20 RAPD primers, of which 107 bands were polymorphic (90.81%). The PIC value ranged from 0.602-0.863 with an average of 0.754. High level of polymorphism and low genetic similarity within pea varieties suggested that they have a high level of genetic diversity. Unique RAPD fragments (700bp-1500bp) were also observed in five varieties i.e., AP-01, Aparna, Uttra, Rachna and Rachna-1D. In the dendrogram, 12 varieties were broadly grouped into 2 main clusters consisting of 5 (Cluster-I) and 4 (Cluster-II) varieties, respectively, while other three varieties i.e., KPMR-522, Aparna and AP-03 were out of group. In cluster-I, Ambika and AP-01 and Rachna and Vikas showed 62% and 58% similarities whereas, HUDP-15 grouped with 56% similarities with rest two varieties. In cluster II, Uttara and Prakash showed maximum similarity (65%) whereas, Rachna1-D showed (58%) similarities with them. KPMR-400 showed 52% similarity in this group. KPMR-400, Aparna and AP-03 were more diverse in comparison to others. A two-dimensional plot generated from principal co-ordinate analysis of RAPD data also supported the clustering pattern of dendrogram. This study indicated the presence of high genetic diversity among pea varieties, which could be used for developing core collections of pea germplasm for breeding and germplasm management purposes.